L'Épine-aux-Bois

Identity

L'Épine-aux-Bois (INSEE 02281) is in Aisne (02), part of CC du Canton de Charly-sur-Marne. Population 241 (2023). ^[1]

INSEE density class: Rural à habitat dispersé (level 6). ^[2]

Data vintages: INSEE BPE 2025 · INSEE SIRENE 2026-09 · INSEE census (RP) 2023 · INSEE COG 2026 · INSEE density grid 2026.

Permanent link: https://vivantrural.com/en/fr/02281-l-epine-aux-bois

Vitality score

Vitality score 10.4/100 — No daily shops (model fr-v0.2).

Confidence: high.

Better served than 12 % of the 17,034 communes of a similar size.

Compare this with communes of a similar size. The score measures how well a place is served relative to its own size band, and larger communes score higher as a rule — so it reads meaningfully against another village, and misleadingly against a town.

Measured but not scored in this model: Market. See the methodology for why.

Services

No food shop, school, café or restaurant in the commune. ^[3,4]

Not found in the commune: Bakery (boulangerie), Butcher (boucherie), Grocery (épicerie / supérette), Supermarket, Restaurant, Café / bar, Nursery school (maternelle), Primary school (élémentaire), GP (médecin généraliste), Pharmacy, Post office / agence postale, Library. ^[3,4]

Market and village life

Market day: unknown — nothing found in the datasets or on the commune website.

Trajectory

Population 261 (2012) → 241 (2023): -7.7 % over 10 years. ^[5,1]

Population 232 (1990) → 241 (2023): 3.9 % over 30 years. ^[6,1]

Dwellings (2023): 130, of which 15.4 % second homes and 5.4 % vacant. ^[7]

Access and surroundings

Bakery (Viels-Maisons): 3.8 km to the west (straight line). ^[8]

Food shop (Viels-Maisons): 3.8 km to the west (straight line). ^[8]

GP (Montmirail): 6.9 km to the east (straight line). ^[9]

Pharmacy (Montmirail): 6.8 km to the east (straight line). ^[9]

Primary school (Montdauphin): 4 km to the south (straight line). ^[10]

Climate

An average of 9 days a year at or above 30 °C and 46 days at or below 0 °C, over 17 complete years in 1995–2024. ^[11]

Measured at the MONTFAUCON weather station, 9.9 km away at 217 m; the village itself is at 164 m. ^[11]

The village sits 53 m below the station, so each day's reading was shifted by 5.71 °C per km of altitude before the days were counted. Expect the result to be within about 0.68 °C. ^[11]

Muggy days — a dew point at or above 18 °C — average 2 days a summer. ^[11]

Humidity measured at BLESMES, 14 km away at 222 m, over 30 summers. ^[11]

That station sits 58 m above the village, so each day's humidity was shifted by 4.22 °C per km before the muggy days were counted. ^[11]

An average of 784 mm of rain a year, spread over 126 days — about 6.2 mm on a day it rains. ^[11]

Rainfall measured at MONTFAUCON, 9.9 km away at 217 m. Rainfall is not adjusted for altitude: unlike temperature it has no simple gradient to correct by. ^[11]

What property sold for

20 houses sold between 2021 and 2025, at a median of 165,650 € — 1,371 € per m² of built surface. ^[12]

The median across Aisne is 1,096 € per m², so this commune sits above it. ^[12]

These are recorded sale prices, not valuations or asking prices, and a median over five years spans five different markets. Built surface excludes land, which carries much of a rural property's value.

Uncertainties

No specific uncertainties flagged.

References

1. INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 02281/2023
2. INSEE density grid 2026
3. INSEE BPE 2025
4. INSEE SIRENE 2026-09
5. INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 02281/2012
6. INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 02281/1990
7. INSEE census (RP) 2023 — 02281/logement/2023
8. INSEE BPE 2025 — 02798
9. INSEE BPE 2025 — 51380
10. INSEE BPE 2025 — 77303
11. Météo-France daily climatology 1995-2024
12. DVF (DGFiP property transactions) 2021-2025